A Higher Example - King Amaziah

Amaziah did what was pleasing in the LORD’s sight, but not like his ancestor David. Instead, he followed the example of his father, Joash. Amaziah did not destroy the pagan shrines, and the people still offered sacrifices and burned incense there.

2 Kings 14:3-4

Most baseball players can only dream of doing what Mickey Mantle did as a center fielder for the New York Yankees. In Mantle’s mind, however, his notorious abuse of alcohol kept him from fulfilling his enormous potential. Shortly before he died in 1995, Mantle said, “God gave me the ability to play baseball. God gave me everything, and I blew it. For the kids out there, don’t be like me.”

Mantle reportedly came to faith in Christ before he died, and he understood how following the right example—or the wrong one—can affect a man’s life.

Amaziah, the eighth king of Judah, blew it when he failed to follow a higher example. Amaziah rejected King David’s godly example and instead followed in the footsteps of his father, Joash.

Joash started out strongly but fell flat on his face later in life. Joash faithfully served God early in his reign, but then he defaulted on his spiritual responsibilities. Like his people, he abandoned the worship of God to worship man-made idols.

In short, Amaziah led reactively instead of proactively, just like his father.

In his early life, Amaziah did some great things for his kingdom, such as defeating the Edomites (see 2 Chronicles 25:11-12). After claiming this victory, Amaziah had an opportunity to make a lasting impact on his people. Instead, he allowed them to continue offering sacrifices and burning incense at pagan shrines. He even worshiped idols that he took from the Edomites.

As a Christian man, you have the opportunity to follow many different examples. Your challenge is to follow godly ones rather than ones like Amaziah, who started out well but finished poorly. Finish strong!

What good examples have you seen that encourage you to develop a strong walk of faith? How can you follow them? What negative examples have made an impact on you? How can you avoid their sad track records?